​The Utah Mammoth announced on Wednesday that they had matched New Jersey’s offer sheet for Barrett Hayton, signing the 26-year-old center to a contract worth $4.775 million for the upcoming season. “Barrett is a key piece of our team and important to what we are building here in Utah,” said general manager Bill Armstrong. “He’s strong in the faceoff circle, plays both sides of the puck and can complement anyone in our forward group. We are grateful to be able to count on Barrett in our lineup next season.” By matching the offer, Utah eliminated the Devils’ chance to recoup a compensation pick—New Jersey would have received their 2027 second-round selection if the offer had not been matched. The decision carried no cost to New Jersey beyond the risk of losing a restricted free agent, similar to how Philadelphia took a calculated risk with its $90 million offer sheet to Anaheim’s Leo Carlsson on Friday.
Under the terms of the deal, Hayton will be eligible to sign an extension with Utah beginning January 1, but cannot be traded before July 1, when he could become an unrestricted free agent at the age of 27. “I’m fired up to get back with my teammates and remain in Utah,” Hayton said. “I’ve grown with this core group my entire career, and it’s exciting that we have an opportunity to do something special next season.”
Hayton arrived in Utah after the fifth overall pick in the 2018 draft, selected by Arizona, and has since accumulated 155 points in 362 NHL games, including playoffs. He finished the previous season with 25 points across 67 regular-season games. His continued development will be a focal point for the Mammoth as they aim to build a competitive lineup in the upcoming campaign.
Offer sheets have historically been rare, though there have been notable exceptions in recent years. In the summer of 2024, St. Louis successfully lured forward Dylan Holloway and defenseman Philip Broberg away from Edmonton when the Oilers were constrained by salary-cap issues, preventing them from matching the offers. This season, fifteen restricted free agents filed for arbitration, which effectively makes them ineligible to sign an offer sheet; among the most prominent is Dallas’ Jason Robertson, who has attracted significant attention as a potential arbitration case.
Sunny Mehta, the Devils’ first-time general manager who took the reins of the team’s hockey operations department in April, offered little commentary about the possibility of an offer sheet for Hayton when asked last week. “I know that the offer sheet thing is a unique scenario,” Mehta said during a video conference with reporters. “It’s exciting, I understand all that, but right now, with it still being within that seven-day window, I can’t comment on any specifics.”